1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an appliance for applying paint to walls with a roller, and, more particularly, to such an appliance configured particularly for applying paint to walls in the vicinity of an interior corner.
2. Background of the Invention
A conventional paint roller tool includes a frame, a handle for holding the frame, and a roller rotatably mounted on an end of the frame. The cylindrical periphery of the roller is covered with a surface suitable for holding and releasing paint, but the ends of the roller are not covered with this material. While such a roller is suitable for painting flat wall surfaces it cannot be used to provide effective paint coverage in interior corners, such as the corners of a rectangular room.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,473,791 describes roller and tray apparatus configured particularly for painting interior corners. The apparatus includes a roller assembly having a handle portion, a bearing portion connected to the handle portion, and a replaceable porous roller portion connected to the bearing portion. The roller portion includes a first canted peripheral edge adapted to contact a first interior surface adjacent to an interior corner without contacting a second interior surface adjacent to the interior corner. A tray assembly includes a squeeze area for receiving the roller portion for squeezing out excess coating material from the roller portion. The squeeze area includes a first canted wall portion which is complementary to the first canted peripheral edge and is adapted to squeeze excess coating material out of the roller portion. The roller portion may also include a second canted peripheral edge adapted to contact a second interior surface adjacent to the interior corner without contacting the first interior surface adjacent to the interior corner. The second canted peripheral edge and the first canted peripheral edge are juxtaposed back-to-back to each other, whereby they form an exterior corner that is complementary to the interior corner. The squeeze area of the tray assembly includes a second canted wall portion which is complementary to the second canted peripheral edge and is adapted to squeeze excess coating material out of the roller portion.
UK Patent Application GB 2172820 A describes a paint roller tool having a pair of cone rollers, with their points extending outward, and with the handle of the roller extending from a gap between the rollers. The cone rollers may be made from a plastic material, having outer surfaces covered with lambs wool, mohair, or a synthetic fiber material.
However, what is needed is an apparatus that can be used both for painting a substantial section of a wall adjacent an interior corner, as well as the corner itself.
In order to apply paint to an internal corner as well as to a wall surface, the distal end of a paint roller may be covered with a material for holding and releasing paint. The frame of the paint roller tool then extends only from the proximal end of the roller, which is not covered in this way. For example, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,102, a corner painting assembly may be attached to the end of a conventional paint roller, with the attachment providing either a bristle end resembling a brush or a flat perpendicular end having a surface identical to the surface of the paint roller. Alternately, a similarly functioning extended paint roller having a bristle end of an end covered with a soft material conducting paint may be used.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,613,264 describes an end cap that can be added to a paint roller, being held in place by inward extending lugs and having formed of a napped material similar to the nap on the surface of the paint roller.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,499,177 describes an end cap assembly for attachment to a commercially available paint roller assembly to allow the application of a coating material, such as paint, uniformly to two intersecting surfaces such as in a corner. The inventive end cap comprises a unitary disc like base having a prong projecting laterally therefrom, the base and prong being formed unitarily from a suitable polymer. A textured material such as fabric, open celled foam, or sheepskin bearing natural wool is adhered to the base. A single prong engages a space existing between the inner surface of the roller cover and the outer surface of the roller frame barrel so that the possibility of damage to the possibly damp paper tube of the roller cover is avoided when the end cap is installed. The prong is straight where joined to the cap at its proximal end, and is curved at its distal or free end. The prong is formed from a material imparting spring qualities.
German Patent Application DE 3616114 A1 describes a cylindrical paint roller composed of a porous material extending around a bearing having a hole extending through the proximal end. A flat end of the porous material may be used to paint a corner.
However, what is needed is a tool for painting both a corner and the wall surfaces adjacent to the corner in a manner that is similarly effective in the application of paint. When a roller having a distal end covered for applying paint is used at a corner, a first strip of one of these adjacent wall surfaces, having a width equal to the length of the roller, is painted, while on the other wall surface a second strip having a width equal to only the diameter of the roller is painted. Each portion of the first strip having a width of the diameter of the roller is exposed to an area of the roller equal to the circumference of the roller times its diameter, or π times the square of the diameter of the roller. On the other hand, the second strip, which has a width of the diameter of the roller, is simultaneously exposed to the area of the end of the roller, or to an area equal to π multiplied by the square of the diameter of the roller and divided by four. Thus, within the second strip, the area of roller from which paint can be removed is only one quarter the area from which paint is removed for a similar width of wall in the first strip.
The patent literature additionally describes a number of paint roller tools designed for specific applications. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,886,621 describes a tool including a paint roller with an elongated cylindrical portion and a hemispherical end, which is used to paint the siding of a building, having overlapping boards. As the cylindrical portion paints one of these boards in a horizontal motion of the tool, the hemispherical portion paints the overlapping bottom edge of the next board up.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,386,611 describes a paint roller tool for painting a post including an external corner, with the tool having a pair of rollers rotating on legs of an L-shaped portion of the frame. A tool with similarly arranged rollers is also shown in U.S. Pat. No. Des. 405,958. Such tools are not suitable for painting the internal corner formed at the intersection of interior walls, since there is a gap between the exterior edges of the rollers, so that the wall surfaces close to the corner cannot be painted.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,022 describes a device including a handle assembly having first, second, and third roller mounting assemblies secured thereto for presenting roller applicators in three separate planes, one of which is adjustable relative to the other two. The device is also adapted for disassembly into a device having only one or two rollers. While the device can be used to paint round posts and exterior corners, it does not include rollers having distal ends covered with a material suitable for applying paint to a surface intersecting a wall being painted by the roller peripheral surfaces, and it is not assembled in a configuration suitable for painting walls at an interior corner.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,386,610 describes a paint application device for painting a wall extending to an edge at an internal corner without painting the adjacent wall extending from such a corner. The device includes a handle, a paint application member and a guide member connected to the handle for guiding the paint application member with respect to an inside corner of the surface to be painted. Preferably, the guide member is extendible from the handle for an adjustable distance to adjustably set a desired distance between the inside corner and the paint application member. The guide member extends along an axis parallel to a longitudinal axis of the handle. A wing screw is provided for holding the guide member in a desired extended position. The guide member preferably has at least one roller engageable with the inside corner of the surface to be painted. The guide member is rotatable about an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the handle. A hinge-tightening handle is provided to prevent rotational movement of the rotatable portion of the guide from a desired angular position. A shield is provided between the handle and the paint application member to protect against paint overspray.